The Aztecs (3-4, 1-2 Mountain West) are still searching for their identity under first-year coach Brady Hoke.

But things are beginning to come together. A week after playing BYU tough, the Aztecs rolled up 531 yards total offense, including 376 in the second half.

They relied heavily on the cannon arm of Lindley and the hands of Sampson. Solid choices.

"We have a lot of weapons on this team," said Lindley, who threw for a career-best 459 yards.

Sampson had been dogged by a tendency to let passes in practices and games hit the turf. Yet the senior had sticky hands against the Rams (3-5, 0-4), turning in the ninth-most yards receiving in a game in Aztecs history.

"Whenever a guy drops a pass, I'm not afraid to come right back to them," Lindley said.

Especially when they're wide open. The Rams couldn't cover Sampson, who always seemed to be in the clear as he caught touchdown passes from Lindley of 5, 33 and 38 yards.

"At some point we have to step up and make a play," CSU cornerback Nick Oppenneer said. "I dropped two interceptions that could have changed the game. As a leader, you have to make plays. ... They made them; we didn't."

The Aztecs trailed by as many as 14 points, making this their largest road comeback since rallying to beat New Mexico 17-16 on Nov. 4, 2000.

This was done without their star receiver. The Aztecs lost Vincent Brown for the second half after he injured his right hand trying to break up an errant pass just before halftime. Brown entered the game as the third-leading receiver in the nation.

But Brown's fellow receivers picked up the slack. Robert Wallace caught five passes for 70 yards, and Dominique Sandifer chipped in 48 and a score.

"Without (Brown) we had to have a couple of guys step up and just finish the game," Sampson said.

It helped that Lindley was on target all afternoon, spreading the ball around. Eight Aztecs caught passes.

"That team outplayed our team," said CSU coach Steve Fairchild, whose team has dropped five straight.

Lindley's 3-yard strike to Preston King brought the Aztecs within 28-27 on the final play of the third quarter. But Lane Yoshida's kick was blocked by James Morehead.

San Diego State took the lead for good with 9:29 remaining when Sampson caught his third TD pass of the game. The Aztecs went for two and converted as Lindley fired a pass to Sandifer, giving San Diego State a 35-28 advantage.

Alston Umuolo had a 60-yard TD catch with 3:07 left to seal the win for the Aztecs, who have won three straight in Fort Collins.

John Mosure received the bulk of the work in the backfield with CSU's leading rusher, Leonard Mason, on the sideline with sore ribs. He rushed for a career-high 130 yards, including a 6-yard TD run when he vaulted through a pair of defenders near the goal line.

Mosure also threw a touchdown pass after taking a direct snap and lofting the ball to a wide-open Zac Pauga, who breezed in for a 23-yard score.

Trailing 21-7 at halftime, the Aztecs quickly rallied out of the locker room on a pair of touchdown passes by Lindley just 62 seconds apart.

That looked like some of the Aztecs teams of the WAC era, who scored fast and often.

Lindley found Sandifer for a 33-yard touchdown. Then, the Aztecs took advantage of Nick Sandford's interception, converting on the next play when Lindley threaded a pass to Sampson for a 33-yard score.

Just like that, the Aztecs were back in business.

"We were told to keep fighting – keep fighting until it's over," Sampson said. "We took it to heart."